According to Dr. Claudio Chivu, primary doctor of cardiovascular surgery, the common definition is that myocardial infarction is necrosis, death of the myocardium, as a result of clogging of a coronary artery.
Coronary arteries are the vessels that provide the blood needed for the heart’s metabolism. Every minute heart “consumes” between 250-300 milliliters of blood. During exercise, the amount of blood needed for heart activity can increase 5-6 times. Any mechanism that blocks the blood’s access to the heart muscle will lead to myocardial infarction.
What happens during a heart attack
Heart muscle cells begin to die within minutes of coronary blockage. The patient feels a pain intense pain in the chest, radiating pain in the left arm, shoulders, abdomen or back between the shoulder blades. Sweating, palpitations, malaise and the feeling of imminent death accompany the pain, and emergency medical treatment is urgently needed.
What are the signs that can predict a heart attack
Angina pectoris can predict a heart attack and consists of chest pain with irradiation in the left arm. It usually occurs with exertion or strong emotions. Neglect of this sign eventually leads to myocardial infarction. The time elapsed from the onset of angina to the onset of myocardial infarction can be hours, days or months.
There are patients who, under a correct medication, do not have a heart attack, although they have had angina pectoris for years.
Other warning signs for a heart attack may be:
- frequent palpitations;
- shoulder pain;
- abdominal discomfort;
- peripheral vascular thrombosis;
- the presence of a proinflammatory condition in the body.
What is the age at which we are more prone to heart attack
The age of over 50 is more commonly associated with myocardial infarction in men. Women are more at risk of heart attack after 55 years.
If we refer strictly to Romania, mortality in myocardial infarction is worrying, clearly higher than in Western Europe: 8-9% versus 6-7%. This proves that there is a need to expand the national network of treatment intervention in acute infarction and its more uniform distribution in the territory.
It can be installed suddenly, without “signs”
Although myocardial infarction is more common in people who have had heart problems, there are situations in which it can set in suddenly.
What is worrying is the fact that we see more and more often patients aged 30 years who present with myocardial infarction, given that In the last century, heart attacks at a young age were extremely rare.
Post-infarction indications. Operation? What does it mean?
The therapeutic attitude after a heart attack depends very much on its severity. If the necrotic myocardial area is reduced it treats coronary heart disease that led to a heart attack. This is done by stent implantation or coronary bypass.
In the situation where the infarction was more extensive, the dead myocardium will fibrosis for several weeks and will form a ventricular aneurysm.
The aneurysm affects the proper functioning of the heart because it stores blood when the heart contracts and releases it when the heart muscle relaxes. This balance inside the heart greatly reduces the efficiency of the heart and heart failure occurs. The treatment consists in excluding the ventricular aneurysm by different techniques, a difficult intervention, with multiple risks.
Finally, in the situation where the heart attack was very high and yet the patient survived, dilated heart disease occurs, which can be treated by heart transplantation.
Risk factors
- Smoking is an extremely important risk factor in triggering cardiovascular disease. Nicotine causes spasm of the coronary arteries, decreases the blood’s ability to carry oxygen, negatively influences blood clotting and platelet adhesion to the endothelium.
- Stress produces hormonal and immunological changes that lead to heart attack.
- effort per se. In those who are known to have heart problems, any uncontrolled exertion can trigger a heart attack.
Read also how to give first aid in case of heart attack
Dr. Claudiu Chivu, primary doctor of cardiovascular surgery
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